US beer brand Samuel Adams has agreed a sponsorship deal with Major League Baseball team the Boston Red Sox.
According to the Boston Globe newspaper, the team has signed an eight-year deal with Boston Beer Co., Samuel Adams’ parent company. The agreement will run until the 2025 season.
Samuel Adams will replace Budweiser as the official beer of the Red Sox.
The Globe said that the deal makes Samuel Adams the first craft beer to become the official beer of an MLB club.
Samuel Adams branding will replace that of Budweiser at Fenway Park as part of the agreement. The Globe said that Boston Beer would also build an experiential bar in the concession area near Fenway Park’s third base line that will be known as ‘Sammy’s on 3rd’.
Boston Beer will be granted the use of the Red Sox name and logo in marketing campaigns through store displays and neon signs in bar windows. Team-related fan competitions will also be launched.
The Red Sox said they negotiated with multiple brewers, including Budweiser’s parent company Anheuser-Busch, but chose Boston Beer because of the team’s preference for local brands and a strong push by the company’s founder and chairman Jim Koch and chief executive Martin Roper.
“We have a strategy of partnering with local companies and brands whenever possible,” Red Sox chief executive Sam Kennedy said. “But Jim and Martin really stepped up and made it clear that they wanted to make a bold statement.”
Budweiser remains the official beer of MLB.